“C’est la vie.”

Translated into English, this French proverb means, “That’s life” or “Such is life.” Carolina, who also goes by Coca, says this proverb often. She says it “whenever it needs to be said, whenever someone needs their problem to be put into context. People need to be reminded that it’s not the end of the world, extraordinarily often.”

Her interpretation of the proverb is that it is a “reminder to let go of the little things—it’s only life! Why sweat the small stuff when there’s so much good to focus on?”

The first time she ever heard it- and therefore learned it- was in the 1990s when the B*Witched song “C’est La Vie” played on the radio all the time.

The reason behind Coca telling it and her interpretation of the proverb shows us what her philosophical outlook on life is. She tries to remember the bigger picture when she starts to worry too much about the small things, such as missing a homework assignment, being late for volleyball practice, or getting in a little tiff with her younger brother. She tries to remember that life is precious and one should not waste time worrying too much about small things in life. One should concentrate on life being a journey and life being something much larger than a bad grade on a test.

I agree with Coca’s interpretation of the proverb. Because she says it all the time, I have begun to say it all the time. Whenever a friend tells me about how they are upset because they got a low grade on a homework assignment, I say “C’est la vie,” and remind them that it is not the end of the world and it will not negatively affect success or progress later in life.

I was surprised to hear Coca’s reasoning behind why she says it, and the circumstances in which she says it. I had no idea that she had put that much thought into why she says it. I had no idea that the proverb was a philosophical outlook. Upon further reflection though, I think it is a good one to have.

Proverbs are imbedded in a particular language and culture. This proverb is imbedded in French language and French culture, and has now become part of American culture. Americans now try to use this phrase to remind themselves about the bigger picture in life. It can be hard sometimes in the fast pace, hardball society we live in. Oftentimes, it seems like one failed test is going to affect one in the long-term. It can really feel that way sometimes and can really ruin one’s day. Americans are trying to adopt this proverb to reduce stress and become a slightly more relaxed, easygoing culture.

Annotation: B*Witched (Musical group). B*Witched. [New York]: Epic, 1998.

“Better late than never.”

This English proverb correctly describes Laura’s outlook on life. “I think ‘better late than never’ every time I go to class late…which is always.” She learned it from her mom at a young age. This proverb “means it is better to show up even if you’re late than to not show up at all.”

This proverb is embedded in American culture. In America, things oftentimes run late. Everyone is rushing to get somewhere, and usually people are late and things start late. To excuse this, people just tend to say “better late than never.” This proverb is a kind of rationalization; it is a way to make people feel better for being late.

I agree with Laura about the proverb’s meaning and I do think it is better to show up late than to not show up at all. This proverb kind of goes with the proverb “c’est la vie,” or “such is life.” It is a way of saying that we should all relax and not panic all the time about keeping up with schedules and strict time schedules. Similar to “such is life,” this proverb is telling us all to keep in mind the bigger picture. Being five minutes late to something is not that big of a deal. It is kind of like saying things could be worse.

I was not at all surprised when Laura tells me this is a proverb she lives by. She is always late to class, lunch, meetings, pretty much any time commitment. She lives a pretty relaxed life and does not get upset over small things. I respect that she does not get sucked into an overly rushed life.

However, other cultures might think this proverb is stupid. In some societies, it is of vital importance that one is on time at all times; there is no leeway. They would say a proverb like “better late than never” should not even exist because there should never even be a possibility one is late. This proverb helps us see distinctions between cultures, their values, and their outlooks on life.

Annotation: Titelman, Gregory. Random House Dictionary of America’s Popular Proverbs & Sayings. New York: Random House, 2000.

“Speak of the devil.”

Marie and I were having a conversation on iChat, which is an instant messaging program. We were talking about a friend of ours and how we had not talked to them in a very, very long time. Suddenly, the friend we were discussing signed online. We both noticed right away and Marie said, “Well, speak of the devil….”

“Speak of the devil” is an abbreviation for “speak of the devil and he shall appear.” Marie learned this English proverb from her parents at a young age. She explained that it is just a reference to someone who appears unexpectedly while being talked about. She uses it when she is talking about someone, and then they just show up out of nowhere. She thinks its meaning is equivalent to “oh, what a coincidence.” She does not think the person who appears unexpectedly while being talked about is a devil at all. She does not think of them in a negative way, she says, “That is just the way the expression goes.” She does not associate a negative connotation with the proverb. She uses it without thinking, and frequently.

In current-day published works, authors use this proverb exactly like Marie does. They use it as a reference to someone appearing unexpectedly while being talked about. In a lot of cases, they do not mean to call the unexpected person an evil devil. They are just remarking that someone has appeared. Page 14 of Married to the Mop illustrates these kinds of cases. In other cases, they are making a joke because the person who appears is someone they do not like, so they do mean it negatively. However, they do not actually think that person is THE devil. Page 109 of Children of the Night exemplifies these other cases.

I agree with Marie about the meaning of the proverb. It is a way of remarking on the coincidence that someone one is talking about suddenly appears. It is an expression of surprise. Marie uses it mostly as an expression of pleasant surprise, but sometimes people do use it as a way to express their unhappiness with the sudden appearance of someone they dislike.

Because I was curious about the origins of the proverb, I looked online. Apparently, before the 20^th century, the proverb was not meant lightheartedly at all. The devil’s name was not supposed to be spoken. It was a superstitious belief that it would cause bad luck. People may or may not have believed that if one mentioned the devil’s name he would actually appear (http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/speak-of-the-devil.html). It is really interesting that the proverb had a more sinister meaning before. One could guess that the proverb did not originally have a playful meaning because it does use the word “devil.”  It is even more interesting that the proverb’s meaning eventually changed. As the times changed, the proverb took on a humorous, playful meaning. I do not think most people think about this when they use the phrase, they just say the phrase because they learned to say it in certain situations.

Annotation: Colley, Barbara. Married to the Mop: A Charlotte LaRue Mystery. New York: Kensington Books, 2006.

Annotation: Lackey, Mercedes. Children of the Night. New York: Tom Doherty Associates, 1990.